1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a method and system for providing continuous communication in an electronic network. Specifically, the invention is a method and system for bi-directional communication that enables and facilitates the creation and use of interactive Internet applications.
2. Description of Related Art
The use of the Internet and other electronic networks has resulted in an increasing shift from software applications designed to run on client computers to server-based applications that are accessible to the client computers of the electronic network. A typical prior art method for a client computer to interact with such server-based applications is through use of a Web browser application. A Web browser application enables the client computer to make requests to and receive responses from the server.
FIG. 1 is a system diagram illustrating the Internet-based communication according to the prior art. In the traditional model, a browser application operable on a client device 14 is used to communicate across the electronic network, such as the World Wide Web (“Web”) 10.
The browser application is used to permit the client device to communicate with a Web site 12. In this prior art model, the user is limited to contact with the selected active Web site. Furthermore, such contact can only be initiated and maintained during the actual visit to the Web site, referred to as a “session” 16. This traditional model requires substantial device capabilities and has therefore been limited to computers and certain other devices such as Internet-capable telephones and personal digital assistants.
FIG. 2 is a graphical user interface illustrating a standard network-delivered service according to the prior art. In the prior art, a browser 20 provides a window 22 in which content from a web site is displayed. Browser applications, however, can be prone to data transmission errors. Furthermore, slow connection speeds between the client device and the Web site server can result in an unsatisfactory user experience.
The prior art browser mode is subject to several additional significant limitations. First, the prior art browser model is unidirectional. Thus, while the client computer can make a request to the server and the server can respond, the server cannot, in turn, make a request to the client computer and receive a corresponding response.
Second, if the browser application is not directed to the site at which the desired the network service is located, interaction between the client and the site is terminated. Thus, communication is not continuously maintained, for example, if the browser application is closed. In addition, it can be difficult to control the allocation of bandwidth and processor capacity in the prior art model. As a result, available processor capacity for other applications running on the client computer can be severely restricted or interrupted, for example when the client device is downloading a large file.
It would therefore be an advantage to provide a method and system for bi-directionally connecting a network-based application to a client device. It would be a further advantage if this method and system provided a persistent connection to a site while the client device is in communication with the electronic network, and not just when the client is browsing at the site. It would be yet another advantage if such method and system were available to all addressable devices on an electronic network.